Celebrating our saint

Maureen Ferrier

Celebrate St Andrew this year with a free visit to some of Scotland’s most iconic heritage attractions.

Casltes, palaces, grand homes and ancient sites From Orkney to Dumfriesshire will be open free of charge on November 28 and 29 as Historic Scotland marks St Andrew’s day.

There are 35 properties in the care of Historic Scotland involved in the Ticket Giveaway, including properties in Aberdeenshire, Angus, Fife, West Lothian and Glasgow.

Arbroath Abbey, St Andrews Cathedral, Linlithgow Palace and Bothwell Castle are all on the St Andrews Day list.

Thousands of tickets have been released and visitors have until Friday November 27 to register on-line for their tickets.

Stephen Duncan, Director of Commercial and Tourism for Historic Environment Scotland, explained: “This weekend-long event, which forms part of Scotland’s celebrations for St Andrew’s Day, sees thousands of tickets released in this year’s promotion.

“Our Ticket Giveaway weekend offers the public a fantastic opportunity to explore and discover more about some of the country’s best known heritage attractions, including its iconic castles, abbeys and palaces, amongst others, for free.”

And he urged: “The Ticket Giveaway is always extremely popular with our visitors so we would encourage early pre-registration online through the Ticket Giveaway’s dedicated website so people don’t miss out on the chance to secure a ticket for the attraction of their choice.”